The Lone Vegan

Daiya on Pizza Problem Solved!

Kc — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 17:52:37 +0000

I’ve finally figured out how to get the Daiya on pizza thing to work. Pizza is cooked at such a high temperature that Daiya ( especially the mozzarella variety ) ends up turning into liquid and I don’t like that.

The solution is to cook the pizza WITHOUT Daiya on it then either wait until the last minute or two of cooking time and add the Daiya on top or just put the Daiya on after you take the pizza out of the oven and then cover the pizza with something like a sheet of aluminum foil for a few minutes and the Daiya will melt all by itself.

This less heat process keeps the Daiya just as it should be and delicious!

Taquitos

Kc — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 17:41:41 +0000

Just made some seriously awesome vegan taquitos. I used Happy Herbivore’s beef crumbles and then added a package of taco seasoning and a little more water to moisten back up.

To make the taquitos, you need to cook ( fry ) the corn tortillas a bit so that they don’t tear when you are trying to roll them up. About a minute on each side with a little oil in the pan should do the trick.

Let them cool just a bit after cooking so you don’t burn your fingers, then place about 3 tbs of maet ( I’m coining a new phrase for “fake meat” ) toward one edge of the tortilla. I also added about 1/2 a tbs of Daiya Pepper Jack Cheese to this version……made them even better than previous versions. Roll the tortilla over the stuffing as tightly as you can without breaking or ripping the tortilla. THEN ( and this is the big secret )……push a toothpick through the middle of the rolled tortilla starting about 1/2 inch from the flap. This will keep the whole thing together.

Put all of the rolled and skewered tortillas back into the hot pan with a little more oil ( about 1 tbs ) and fry for about 3 minutes. Turn them over and fry the other side for about 3 minutes.

Let them cool for a few minutes and then you can take out the toothpick and serve.

I actually got D to eat one and he said they were incredible! Enjoy!

Lasagna

Kc — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 13:17:49 +0000

I got bit by the cooking bug hard Friday night and went on the search for something I could make that I would love and that D would not take exception to any of the ingredients. Out came Veganomicon! I bought the book a year ago but still haven’t made very many of the recipes in it. The recipes look wonderful and everything I’ve tried from Isa over at The Post Punk Kitchen has been great, but I still have reservations about “veganized” recipes. The idea of trying to recreate things like ricotta just seems impossible and kinda gross. But boy, am I glad I took the plunge!

The lasagna recipe using Cashew Ricotta blew us away…..us…..yes, D too!

I did cut down on the oil a bit by not putting any on the spinach. I also cut down on the salt for the whole thing by about 1/4 maybe even 1/2. I also ran out of marinara before being able to put much on the top, but I had a jar in the fridge and just used the rest of that. It was only about a cup. I used their instructions for making the lasagna without boiling the noodles first and that even worked beautifully.

So, if you miss lasagna or need to wow your friends and family with a great meal, give this a shot.

Potato Skins

Kc — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 00:10:15 +0000

D and I went to an all vegan super bowl party! It was great!

There was more vegan food than I’ve ever seen in one place.

My two favorite items there were a spinach and artichoke heart dip and Swedish meatballs. Both were so good I had a really hard time making myself stop eating.

I brought potato skins. They were a huge hit! They were so good in fact that D just had to try one and decided that from now on I didn’t need to make non-vegan ones. Yay!

Vegan Potato Skins Recipe

Makes 8 potato skins

Ingredients:

4 medium-sized russet potatoes
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 tablespoons butter, melted
salt and pepper to taste
bacon bits
1 cup Daiya Cheddar
1/2 cup sour cream
1-2 green onions, thinly sliced

Put it All Together:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Scrub potatoes under running water; pat dry. Rub skins with olive oil, and bake in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes, or until just soft.
Remove potatoes from the oven and set aside to cool. They should be just cool enough to handle comfortably. Turn the oven up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
When potatoes have cooled, slice them in half lengthwise. Using a spoon, scoop out the cooked potato leaving a little less than 1/4 of an inch of potato along the sides and bottom of the skins. Reserve the scooped-out potato for another use, if desired, or discard.
Brush the hollowed out potato skins on both sides with melted butter, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place them, skin side up, on a rack in a baking pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, then turn them over and bake for another 10 minutes.
Remove potato skins from the oven, but don’t turn the oven off yet. Fill skins with cheese and bacon bits, and return them to the oven. Bake or broil for about 3 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly.
Spoon a dollop of sour cream on top of each potato skin, and top with a few green onion slices. Serve hot.

Grilled Cheese Sandwhich

Kc — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 00:00:05 +0000

Today was not a fun day. I’ve had a crazy stressful month and am moving tomorrow. Today, I had a battle with T-Mobile. They won this round…..but the war is far from over.

Anyway, I needed some serious comfort food. There isn’t much in the house at this point because of the impending move. So I stood in front of the fridge and just stared into it.

D was making a sandwich and just as I was wishing I had sandwich fixings the Cheddar Daiya came into view. I’d thought about making a grilled cheese sandwich with Daiya before but never did it. Today was the day.

I am happy to report that it was scrumptious! So if you ever liked grilled cheese sandwiches, give it a shot. You won’t be disappointed.

Daiya on Pizza is Gross!

Kc — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 18:54:02 +0000

I can’t really believe that I’m the only person who absolutely cannot stand Daiya on pizza. I’ve tried making pizza several times and I’ve even gotten a pizza from Whole Foods with Daiya. It is just inedible! Yuck, gross, not gonna happen…..couldn’t even scrape the stuff off to save the pizza.

With that said, I generally love Daiya. I’ll eat the stuff right out of the bag and put it all over pasta. So, I challenge anyone to give me the magic secret to making pizza with Daiya where the cheese doesn’t turn into a clam chowder consistency. I’m aching for pizza with some cheese on it!

I am going to try turning making the pizza without putting the cheese on until the very end and then turning the heat down on the oven. This is the only thing I can think of which has a hope of working. When I do….I’ll give you all an update.

Until then, please let me know if you have had a similar problem and were able to solve it. I really would love some good old pizza with cheese on it. :<

Mac & Cheese

Kc — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 20:38:04 +0000

I have always loved mac & cheese. The wonderful creamy goodness satisfies like nothing else can. Bad day at work? Mac & Cheese. Cold and snowy outside? Mac & Cheese. Got the promotion? Mac & Cheese.

Since becoming vegan, it is the one thing I’ve truly missed. I always like cheese and did have a hard time giving it up, but the worst was losing Mac & Cheese. I’ve tried a dozen or so vegan “cheeses” and rarely been able to swallow a single bite. Of course Daiya has changed my world and given back some cheesiness to my life. (Thank you Daiya!)

Still, I’ve tried making pizza with Daiya and have had absolutely no luck. The cheese seems to become this sort of soup like slop invading the pizza to the point where I can’t even scrape it off to salvage the rest. I ordered a vegan pizza from Whole Foods and was so excited as I’d heard good things, but this was no different than what I’d managed on my own. I gave up for a bit on doing anything with Daiya that involved much heat as I was convinced that this is where things went wonky.

Fortunately D’s love of Mac & Cheese wore me down. I’d made non-vegan Mac & Cheese for him a couple of times since moving back to Dallas and each time I stared at it longingly. Finally I broke. I searched and searched for a Mac & Cheese recipe with Daiya that I thought had any hope of working and came across this recipe. It wasn’t just good. I truly believe it is the best Mac & Cheese I’ve ever had vegan or non. It is so good that when I make it, I want D and my roomates to eat some just because I want them to say they will no longer eat the other stuff and I can make only vegan Mac & Cheese from now on…..but really I don’t want to share it because I want all of it myself.

Give this a try and let me know what you think!

Ingredients-
16oz package of elbow macaroni or pasta of choice
3 cups shredded Daiya Cheddar Cheese
3 tablespoons vegan butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 to 2 1/2 cups* unsweetened rice or soy milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Salt to taste
1/4 teaspoon paprika
Enough panko bread crumbs to liberally cover (I used an “Italian” flavored variety)
Red chili flakes to taste (optional)

Directions-
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cook pasta about 5 minutes until it’s just tender. Don’t cook all the way or it will fall apart when you bake it.
3. Drain pasta and transfer to greased baking dish. I packed it all into a smaller 8×10 dish so it would set up nice and thick.
4. Mix in about 2/3′s of the cheese into the pasta and set aside.
5. In a small pot melt the butter. Add the salt & pepper, then whisk in the flour until combined. Stir in the milk. Keep stirring until it starts to boil, then keep stirring for about another minute until it thickens up. *(Start with 2 cups of milk but if sauce gets too thick just add a little bit more, you don’t want it to be like a paste, just a thickened liquid).
6. Pour the milk mixture into the pasta and mix everything well. Top with the remaining cheese. Cover everything with a generous layer of breadcrumbs. Give the whole thing a light dusting of paprika.
7. Pop in the oven for 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and top is starting to brown. If you like it spicy sprinkle some of the chili flakes on top when serving.

http://www.toliveandeatinla.com/2009/vegan-macaroni-cheese-daiya/

Seitan….sort of

Kc — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 18:03:12 +0000

I have been jonesing to make some seitan lately but the only recipe I’ve ever used is in a cookbook that is in storage and cannot be accessed. I’ve never been brave enough ( or had the desire ) to make the type of seitan where you have to boil it. Just seems like way to much work for such little return.

So….I went in search of a seitan recipe that was baked instead of boiled. I was a little skeptical when reading the ingredients but decided that it was worth a shot. It turned out to be super easy and tastes wonderful! It is perfect looking and perfect for sandwiches.

INGREDIENTS:

1.5 c. vital wheat gluten
1/4 c. nutritional yeast
1 . salt
2 t. paprika
1/4 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. cumin
1-2 t. pepper
1/8 t. cayenne pepper
1/8 t. allspice (I skipped this)
3/4 c. cold water
4 T. tomato paste
1 T. ketchup (I didn’t have ketchup so I used a little liquid from some salsa and another T of tomato paste)
2 T. olive oil
2 T. vegetarian Worcestershire sauce
1-3 cloves garlic, crushed well (I just sprinkled in garlic powder to taste)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325°.

In a large mixing bowl mix dry ingredients. Mix the rest of the ingredients (liquid ingredients) in a smaller mixing bowl. Whisk well until mixed.

Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients. Mix well, then knead for several minutes.

Form into a log (6-8″ long), wrap tightly in foil, twisting ends. Bake for 90 minutes. When done baking, unwrap and leave out to cool all the way. Then wrap it foil or plastic and refrigerate. Slice to use as desired.

This is where I got the recipe.

Veggie State Fair Review

Kc — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 16:52:48 +0000

The fair was a big success. There were hundreds of people just in the time I spent there. All of the food was incredible. The Spiral Diner had vegan Frito Pie. I haven’t had frito pie in about a million years, but it was just what I remembered and everyone I talked to LOVED it!

S ate and enjoyed everything with me. D…..not so much.

I can’t wait until next year. I would really love to get more involved next year and actual work the fair as well as just go and eat everything in site.

Texas State Veggie Fair!

Kc — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 23:06:00 +0000

The first Texas State Veggie Fair is happening on Saturday! I can’t wait!

I went to the Texas State (cruelty) Fair last week and felt very sad. We didn’t go anywhere near the livestock areas, but just the smell of the “food” there was enough to turn my stomach a bit.

The Veggie Fair will be down in Deep Ellum. I haven’t been down that way in many, many years. D and S ( S is a new female roomate ) will be going with me. This should be simply heaven!